Manhattan ? Kansas State University has submitted a plan to remove a chemical landfill that it has used for 25 years.

The university and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment will excavate the landfill and install water treatment facilities for the area.

The plan could cost up to $4 million. But university officials say they pay a quarter of a million dollars per year to monitor water levels around the landfill.

University officials say they hope the water treatment facilities will be needed for only three years after the contaminated soil is removed. But KDHE geologist Brad Roberts says it’s hard to know how long the effort to clean the area will take.

KMAN reports that the public comment period ends Nov. 19. If the proposal is accepted, the water treatment system could be put in as early as January.